Apparatus to provide communication with the veins of a patient

ABSTRACT

An apparatus for obtaining blood specimens from a patient which includes a needle adapted to be temporarily injected and retained in communication with a vein of a patient and a body made of a self-sealing material with a cavity or void formed therein, which is in communication with the needle.

United States Patent 72] Inventor Roger P. Johnson 5930 W. SiegfriedPlace, Milwaukee, Wis. S32 14 [21] Appl. No. 758,504

[22] Filed Sept. 9, 1968 [45] Patented Oct. 19, 1971 [54] APPARATUS TOPROVIDE COMMUNICATION WITH THE VEINS OF A PATIENT 12 Claims, 3 DrawingFigs.

[52] U.S.Cl 128/2 R, 128/214 [51] Int. Cl A611) 10/00 [50] FieldofSearchm. l28/2,214, 350, 214.2, 260, l, DIG. 5, 215, 216; 267/152 [56]References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,930,556 3/1960 Horlacher267/152 X 3,306,563 2/1967 Soto 128/214 X 2,346,334 4/1944 Shaw 128/2142,656,835 10/1953 Eisenstein 128/214 2,832,338 4/1958 128/214 2,868,2001/1959 128/214 2,955,595 10/1960 128/214 3,157,201 11/1964 128/214X3,310,051 3/1967 128/350 X 3,332,418 7/1967 128/214 3,378,006 4/1968128/214 3,429,311 2/1969 128/214 3,447,570 6/1969 128/214 X PrimaryExaminer-Richard A. Gaudet Assistant Examiner- Kyle L. Howell Atlorneys-Robert E. Clemency, John W. Michael, Gerrit D.

Foster, Bayard H. Michael, Paul R. Puerner, Joseph A. Gemignani, Andrew0. Riteris and Spencer B. Michael ABSTRACT: An apparatus for obtainingblood specimens from a patient which includes a needle adapted to betemporarily injected and retained in communication with a vein of apatient and a body made of a self-sealing material with a cavity or voidformed therein, which is in communication with the needle.

PATENTEDUCT 19 Ian m 5 Ms Wjw J? M APPARATUS TO PROVIDE COMMUNICATIONWITH TIIE VEINS OF A PATIENT BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Obtainingspecimens of blood from a patient generally requires the introduction ofa needle into a vein of the patient each time a specimen is taken.Repeated injection of a needle into a patient over any extended periodof time leads to considerable discomfort as well as vigorous protests bythe patient. The problem of obtaining specimens in obese patients isparticularly acute since the veins of the patient lie buried in thesubcutaneous tissue. Repeated assaults are made on a sin gle, tiny,movable, fragile vein in the dorsum of the hand, which after the thirdstick," goes into spasm, leaving only an ecchymotic area which serves asa mocking and silent testimony. Efforts have been made to relieve thisdiscomfort in patients undergoing intravenous injections by removing theintravenous tubing at the junction with the IV needle, inserting asyringe, withdrawing a blood specimen and replacing the tubing on the IVneedle. This procedure involves a certain risk in contaminating theintravenous system and the possibility of introducing foreign elementsinto the blood stream, in addition to being messy.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention provides an apparatus forperiodically injecting into or removing fluid from a patient from apoint remote from the veins of the patient. More particularly theinvention provides medical apparatus comprising a body of material whichis pierceable by a needle and self-sealing upon withdrawal of the needleand which has therein a cavity, whereby to afiord removablecommunication with the cavity by means of a hollow needle to provide forsupply or withdrawal of fluids between the cavity and a patient. Thebody is dimensioned such that the distance in a first plane extendingthrough the cavity from the cavity to the outside of the body issubstantially greater than the distance from the cavity to the outsideof the body in a second plane extending through the cavity andperpendicularly to the first plane. In addition, the apparatus includesa plate member which is of material nonpenetrable by a needle and whichis assembled to a surface of the body.

In one embodiment, the apparatus includes a wafer or disc formed from aself-sealing material with a cavity or void in the wafer connected to anintravenous needle which is adapted to be temporarily secured in apatient. Fluid is injected or removed by merely inserting a syringeneedle through the selfsealing material and into the cavity. Onwithdrawal of the syringe needle from the cavity, the needle puncture inthe wafer will be automatically closed by the self-sealing material.

This apparatus provides the patient with complete mobility during hishospital stay since the disc of self-sealing material and theintravenous needle are secured temporarily to the patient. No tourniquetis required in using this apparatus, thus virtually eliminating thepossibility of obtaining spurious results. The apparatus can also beincorporated into an intravenous feeding system by connecting the cavityin the disc to a IV port in the intravenous system. The IV port can beclosed when a specimen is to be taken from the cavity without disturbingany part of the intravenous feeding system.

Elimination of repeated injections into the veins of the desperately illwill salvage or preserve the veins. This is particularly significant inpatients requiring injections every 2 or 3 hours.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent from the followingdetailed description when read in connection with the accompanyingdrawing in which:

FIG. I is an exploded view of the disc assembly for the apparatus.

FIG. 2 is a top view of the apparatus arranged for connection to anintravenous system.

FIG. 3 is a side view in section of the apparatus shown in FIG. 2.

The apparatus of this invention provides a reservoir for injecting intoor removing a fluid from a patient at a point remote from the veins of apatient. More specifically, the apparatus 8 shown includes an assembly10 having a body 18 with a cavity or void 12 connected by means of aplastic conduit 14 made of polyethylene to an intravenous needle 16which is adapted to be injected into and left in the vein of a patient.The cavity or void 12 is formed in the body 18 with a wall ofself-sealing, nontoxic, sterilizable material such as rubber. The wallof self-sealing material must be thick enough to insure a good seal.Each time fluid is to be injected into or taken from the patient, asyringe needle 20 is injected through the wall of the body 18 into thecavity 12 and the required amount of fluid is injected or is withdrawnfrom the cavity 12. When the needle 20 is withdrawn from the body 18,the needle will be automatically sealed by the self-sealing material,thereby preventing contamination of the apparatus.

Means are provided for protecting the assembly 10 from damage throughimpact while attached to the patient. In this regard, the assembly 10 isprotected by means of a cover 36 and a base 30 preferably made of aplastic material and positioned in a parallel spaced relation with thebody 18 positioned between the cover 36 and base 30. Various means maybe used to connect the cover 36 to the base 30 and in the disclosedembodiment a pair of pegs 38 formed integral with the cover 36 extendthrough apertures 40 in the body 18 and are connected to the base 30.The body 18 can be made in a variety of shapes, such as a disc, wafer ordoughnut with the void 12 formed in the center of the body 18. A syringeneedle 20 can be inserted into the body 18 at any point on the exposedouter periphery of the disc.

Various means may be used to provide communication with the void orcavity 12 in the body 18. In the disclosed embodiment, a pair of tubes32 are embedded in base 30 with the ends 34 of the tubes projectingupward into the cavity 12. The other ends 35 of the tubes 32 areconnected to the vein of a patient and to an intravenous system.Although various means may be employed, in the disclosed embodiment theconduit 14 is used to connect the end 35 of one of the tubes 32 to theintravenous needle 16 and a second plastic conduit 22 is used to connectthe end 35 of the other needle 32 to an IV ort 24. All of theconnections are sealed to form a closed flow path or system between theintravenous needle 16, the cavity 12, and the IV port 24 through theconduits 14 and 22. When the apparatus is used for obtaining bloodspecimens only, the IV port 24 is closed by means of a plug or grommet26. Specimens can be taken from the cavity 12 in the body 18 atsubstantially any position around the outer circumference of the body 18by merely inserting the syringe needle 20 through the wall of the body18 and into the cavity 12. Although the apparatus 8 has been describedas having two tubes 32 projecting into the void 12, a single tube can beused when the apparatus is used for taking blood samples only.

Means are provided for attaching the apparatus 8 to the patient toprovide mobility while the patient is confined to the hospital. Thismeans includes means for attaching the assembly 10 to the patient andmeans for securing the intravenous needle 16 in the patient. Theassembly attaching means includes a strap or band 45 which is passedthrough slots 42 provided at each end of the base 30. The band 45 can bemade of a strip of tape or any elastic material which can be applied tothe patient. A sponge rubber backing 50 may be provided on the base 30to cushion the assembly when mounted on the patient. The means forsecuring the intravenous needle 16 to the patient after injection into avein of the patient includes a tape or strap (not shown).

In operation, the cavity 12 and tube 14 are generally filled with aneutral solution, such as a 0.9 percent saline or any balancedelectrolyte solution, by inserting a syringe needle 20 or 25 into thecavity 12 or into the grommet 26 (FIG. 2). Sufficient solution isinserted to fill the cavity 12, the conduits I4 and 22 and theintravenous needle 16 to prevent the formation of an air trap or airbubble in the apparatus 8. The intravenous needle 16 is then injectedinto a vein in the patient and taped into position. The assembly issecured to the patient at a point remote from the intravenous needle 16and in a position convenient for injecting a syringe needle into thewafer 18 by attaching the strap or band 45 to the patient. The solutionin the apparatus is withdrawn to fill the conduits l4 and 22 and thecavity 12 with blood from the patient. A specimen of blood can then betaken from the cavity 12 in the body 18 by inserting the syringe needleinto the cavity 12. After the blood specimen has been removed from thecavity 12, the saline solution should be re-inserted into the cavity 12and conduit 14 and 22 to prevent clotting in the apparatus.

This apparatus can also be used as part of an intravenous system, byremoving the grommet 26 from the IV port 24 and connecting the IV port24 to intravenous tubing (not shown). Clamps 28 are provided on theconduits l4 and 22 on either side of the assembly 10 to close off thesystem when required. The flow of intravenous solution through the tubes32 and the cavity 12 will provide a self-cleaning action in the cavity12 by means of the angular deposition of the ends 34 of the tubes 32preventing the possibility of any blood becoming stagnant in the cavity12.

When a specimen of blood is to be taken from the cavity 12 in the wafer10, the IV port 24 is turned off and the syringe needle 20 inserted intothe cavity 12 in the wafer. The first cubic centimeter of bloodwithdrawn from the cavity 12 will be a mixture of blood and theintravenous solution and should be discarded. Using the same syringeneedle 20 but a different syringe, the required blood specimen iswithdrawn (from 10 to 20 cc. and the syringe needle 20 then removed orwithdrawn from the wafer 10. The [V port 24 is turned on again tocontinue the introduction of the intravenous solution. The reconnectionof the system for intravenous feeding flushes out the cavity 12, thuseliminating the possibility of blood becoming stagnant in the cavity 12before the next specimen is taken.

in a specific embodiment of the apparatus, as shown in FIG. 2, the base30 is formed from an opaque plastic that is oneeighth inch thick, 1%inches wide and three-fourths inches long. The tubes 32 are l9-gaugeneedles and are embedded in the plastic base. The wafer or disc 18 is 1%inches in diameter, three-eighths inches thick with a 14-inch bubble orcavity in the center. The rubber consistency should be fairly firm toinsure a good seal but soft enough to permit the entry and withdrawal ofsyringe needles of standard sizes 19-25 gauge). The polyethylene conduitis 5 inches long on the patients side and 2 inches long on the IV side.All of the materials must be made of inert materials that will notinterfere with any of the common determinations of blood.

This apparatus can also be used under conditions requiring repeatedinjections of IV medication. The most common of these is the repeatedinjection of heparin every 4 to 6 hours. The cavity 12 and conduit 14are first primed or charged with heparin instead of the saline solutionand subsequent doses of heparin are given by piercing the wafer 18 andinjecting the heparin into the cavity 12. Other uses can be made of theapparatus where repeated injection or sampling is required.

What is claimed is:

1. Medical apparatus adapted for treating a patient, said apparatuscomprising a body of material which is penetrable by a needle andself-sealing upon withdrawal of the needle and which has whollydefinedtherein a cavity surrounded by said self-sealing penetrable materialwhereby to afiord removable communication with said cavity by means of ahollow needle to provide for supply or withdrawal of fluids between saidcavity and a patient, said body having at least one generally flatsurface and being dimensioned such that the distance, in a first planeextending parallel to said surface and through said cavity, from saidcavity to the outside of said body is substantially greater than thedistance from said cavity to the outside of said body in a second planeextending through said cavity and perpendicularly to said surface, and aplate member assembled to said surface, and plate member being formed ofa material which is nonpenetrable by a needle.

2. Medical apparatus adapted for treating a patient, said apparatuscomprising a body of material which is pierceable by a needle andself-sealing upon withdrawal of the needle and which has therein acavity, whereby to afford removable communication with said cavity bymeans of a hollow needle to provide for supply or withdrawal of fluidsbetween said cavity and a patient, said body being generally wafershaped with opposed faces and being dimensioned such that the distance,in a first plane extending generally parallel to said opposed faces andthrough said cavity, from said cavity to the outside periphery of saidbody is substantially greater than the distance from said cavity to theoutside of said body in a second plane extending through said cavity andperpendicular to said first plane, and plate members assembled to saidbody and extending along the surface of each of said opposed faces, saidplate members being nonpenetrable by a needle.

3. Apparatus in accordance with claim 2 including a conduit in one ofthe said plate members and a hollow needle extending from said one platemember and through said body into said cavity and communicating withsaid conduit.

4. Apparatus in accordance with claim 3 including another conduit in oneof said plate members and another hollow needle extending from saidplate member having said other conduit and through said body into saidcavity and communicating with said other conduit.

5. Apparatus in accordance with claim 2 wherein one of said platemembers has portions extending outwardly from said body on oppositesides thereof and including openings therein adapted to permitconnection of said apparatus to a support.

6. Medical apparatus adapted for treating a patient, said apparatuscomprising a body of material which is penetrable by a needle andself-sealing upon withdrawal of the needle and which has wholly definedtherein a cavity surrounded by said self-sealing penetrable materialwhereby to afford removable communication with said cavity by means of ahollow needle to provide for supply or withdrawal of fluids between saidcavity and a patient, said body having dimension such that the distance,in a first plane extending through said cavity, from said cavity to theoutside of said body is substantially greater than the distance fromsaid cavity to the outside of said body in a second plane extendingthrough said cavity and perpendicularly to said first plane, and platemembers assembled to said body along opposed surfaces of said bodygenerally parallel to said first plane, said members being formed by amaterial which is nonpenetrable by a needle.

7. Apparatus in accordance with claim 6 wherein said body is generallywafer shaped having first and second opposed surfaces generally parallelto said first plane.

8. Apparatus in accordance with claim 6 including a conduit in one ofsaid plate members and a hollow needle extending from said one platemember and through said body into said cavity and communicating withsaid conduit.

9. Apparatus in accordance with claim 8 including another conduit in oneof said plate members and another hollow needle extending from saidplate member having said other conduit and through said body into saidcavity and communicating with said other conduit.

10. Apparatus in accordance with claim 6 wherein one of said platemembers has portions extending outwardly from said body on oppositesides thereof and including openings therein adapted to permitconnection of said apparatus to a support.

11. Apparatus in accordance with claim 10 including a band memberextending through at least one of said openings.

12. Apparatus in accordance with claim 6 including a resilient backingattached to one of said plate members on the side thereof remote fromsaid body.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent 3.613.663Dated October 19. 1971 Inventor(s) Dr. Roger P. Johnson It is certifiedthat error appears in the above-identified patent and that said LettersPatent are hereby corrected as shown below:

Column 4, line 1 "and" should be said Sig ed and sealed this 16th day ofMay 1972.

(SEAL) Attest:

EDWARD M.FLETCHER, JR.

Co missio s" of Patents

1. Medical apparatus adapted for treating a patient, said apparatuscomprising a body of material which is penetrable by a needle andself-sealing upon withdrawal of the needle and which has wholly definedtherein a cavity surrounded by said selfsealing penetrable materialwhereby to afford removable communication with said cavity by means of ahollow needle to provide for supply or withdrawal of fluids between saidcavity and a patient, said body having at least one generally flatsurface and being dimensioned such that the distance, in a first planeextending parallel to said surface and through said cavity, from saidcavity to the outside of said body is substantially greater than thedistance from said cavity to the outside of said body in a second planeextending through said cavity and perpendicularly to said surface, and aplate member assembled to said surface, and plate member being formed ofa material which is nonpenetrable by a needle.
 2. Medical apparatusadapted for treating a patient, said apparatus comprising a body ofmaterial which is pierceable by a needle and self-sealing uponwithdrawal of the needle and which has therein a cavity, whereby toafford removable communication with said cavity by means of a hollowneedle to provide for supply or withdrawal of fluids between said cavityand a patient, said body being generally wafer shaped with opposed facesand being dimensioned such that the distance, in a first plane extendinggenerally parallel to said opposed faces and through said cavity, fromsaid cavity to the outside periphery of said body is substantiallygreater than the distance from said cavity to the outside of said bodyin a second plane extending through said cavity and perpendicular tosaid first plane, and plate members assembled to said body and extendingalong the surface of each of said opposed faces, said plate membersbeing nonpenetrable by a needle.
 3. Apparatus in accordance with claim 2including a conduit in one of the said plate members and a hollow needleextending from said one plate member and through said body into saidcavity and communicating with said conduit.
 4. Apparatus in accordancewith claim 3 including another conduit in one of said plate members andanother hollow needle extending from said plate member having said otherconduit and through said body into said cavity and communicating withsaid other conduit.
 5. Apparatus in accordance with claim 2 wherein oneof said plate members has portions extending outwardly from said body onopposite sides thereof and including openings therein adapted to permitconnection of said apparatus to a support.
 6. Medical apparatus adaptedfor treating a patient, said apparatus comprising a body of materialwhich is penetrable by a needle and self-sealing upon withdrawal of theneedle and which has wholly defined therein a cavity surrounded by saidself-sealing penetrable material whereby to afFord removablecommunication with said cavity by means of a hollow needle to providefor supply or withdrawal of fluids between said cavity and a patient,said body having dimension such that the distance, in a first planeextending through said cavity, from said cavity to the outside of saidbody is substantially greater than the distance from said cavity to theoutside of said body in a second plane extending through said cavity andperpendicularly to said first plane, and plate members assembled to saidbody along opposed surfaces of said body generally parallel to saidfirst plane, said members being formed by a material which isnonpenetrable by a needle.
 7. Apparatus in accordance with claim 6wherein said body is generally wafer shaped having first and secondopposed surfaces generally parallel to said first plane.
 8. Apparatus inaccordance with claim 6 including a conduit in one of said plate membersand a hollow needle extending from said one plate member and throughsaid body into said cavity and communicating with said conduit. 9.Apparatus in accordance with claim 8 including another conduit in one ofsaid plate members and another hollow needle extending from said platemember having said other conduit and through said body into said cavityand communicating with said other conduit.
 10. Apparatus in accordancewith claim 6 wherein one of said plate members has portions extendingoutwardly from said body on opposite sides thereof and includingopenings therein adapted to permit connection of said apparatus to asupport.
 11. Apparatus in accordance with claim 10 including a bandmember extending through at least one of said openings.
 12. Apparatus inaccordance with claim 6 including a resilient backing attached to one ofsaid plate members on the side thereof remote from said body.